Drum beat in the style of “Smooth Criminal” — Michael Jackson
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Song grooves
· Simplified drum grooves in the style of famous songs — not exact transcriptions.
Michael Jackson’s 1987 track runs on a tight, fast 16th-note groove. Play it light and precise; the energy comes from consistency, not volume.
- Tempo
- 118 BPM
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Groove
- 16th-note funk groove
- Genre
- Pop
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Loop
- 1 bar
Drum pattern
| Open hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
| Snare | ||||||||||||||||
| Kick |
Each row is one drum, each column one step. Large dots are accents, small dots normal hits, faint dots ghost notes.
Who plays what: notes per bar
| Cymbal hand | 16 |
|---|---|
| Snare hand | 5 |
| Kick foot | 4 |
The kick always lines up with the cymbal, so the work is in the snare hand: 3 of its 5 notes are ghost notes.
About this groove
At about 118 BPM it has a medium tempo: one beat lasts 508 ms and a 4/4 bar takes 2 seconds. Use the tempo buttons to slow it down while you learn.
Practice plan
How it differs from similar beats
Compared with “Funky Drummer” (James Brown, funk groove with ghost notes), this groove changes only small details — and it runs 18 BPM faster. If you can already play that one, this is your next step. Funky Drummer →
“Uptown Funk” (Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars) uses exactly the same simplified pattern, 3 BPM slower — a good warm-up before this one. Uptown Funk →
Other songs with the same 16th-note funk groove
Similar drum beats
This is a simplified rhythm pattern in the style of “Smooth Criminal” by Michael Jackson, written for drum practice. It is not a transcription of the recording and contains no audio, lyrics or artwork. Drums3D is not affiliated with Michael Jackson.